Wall panel structure



Jan. 5, 1965 R. PICHON WALL. PANEL STRUCTURE Filed Feb. 17, 1961 nited dates The present invention relates to a new wooden structure,

which can be made by means of prefabricated panels and used for houses, shops, buildings for animals or various enclosures, such as frames for refrigerators. The panels according to the invention lare particularly convenient for the exterior walls of structures.

Up to the present, wooden structures have been made by means of boards, blocks, lap-joints, borders and so on, the walls usually being massive and sometimes with the interposition of an insulating layer. Sealing was ensured by covering the lap-joints or by enoasing, and was not perfect by virtue of variations in the dimensions of the assembled pieces of wood. l

Also in known structures, the exterior walls are uniform and their resistance to weather effects leaves much to be desired.

The present invention concerns a new method of constructing walls of wood or other similar material, which remedies these disadvantages, and has new advantages, while still giving rise to ready industrial fabrication of panels which are readily transportable to a construction site.

The walls according to :the invention have excellent sealing and a remarkably increased resistance to wind,

rain, snow and sun; the only appreciable variation in dimensions which they can undergo occur vertically and cm thus be easily compensated., In addition these walls have much improved sound 'and thermal insulating properties, while varnishes or paints adhere betterthan to previous types of walls.

The wall according to the invention is constituted by the superposition of a plurality of boards or planks and wooden brackets or strips, the greatest dimension of which length) is placed parallel to the base of the structure, at least two brackets being interposed between two adjacent boards so as to form free internal spaces, each defined by a pair of boards and a pair of brackets.

In the structure according to the invention, it is possible to use many sorts of wood, and even boards and brackets containing knots.

According to another advantageous and preferred feature of the invention, the brackets are disposed between the boards in such a way that one of the sides of each board coincides with an exterior face of a bracket, forming therewith 'a plane face of the wall, whereas the other side ofthe board extends beyond the face of another bracket and forms `an indented face.

Preferably the indented face constitutes the external face of the wall of the structure and the boards are slightly inclined towards the bottom, being inclined from the plane face to the indented face.

According to another useful and preferred feature of the invention, apertures pass through all or some of the boards in the region situated between the brackets.

These apertures establish communication between many or all of the free spaces in the interior of the wall; it is advantageous to provide communication between lthese spaces and the exterior atmosphere to allow the wall to breathe, that is to say to allow air to circulate freely within the wall.

In a dilferent structure, tubes or rods connect all or some of the apertures, thus reinforcing the structure and facilitating construction.

In the accompanying drawing, two embodiments of the invention are represented by way of examples and not limitations.

In the drawing:

FIG. l is a cross-section of the bottom part of one form of wall according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section of another form `of wall according to the invention; v

FIG. 3 is a view7 partially in plan, corresponding to FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective representation of a panel for structures according tothe invention.

In FIG. 1, boards 1, 1' and wooden brackets 2 and 3 are shown, in cross-section superposed so as to define a free space 4 between them. The figure shows only three boards and three pairs of brackets 2-3 while 7 of them are represented in FIG. 4, andrtheir number can vary according to the desired height of the panel.

The section of FIG. l indicates on the right, the edges of the boards 1-1 exactly in alignment with the sides of the brackets 3 so las to produce a plane face. In contrast, on the left, the wooden brackets 2 are set back in relation to the edges 5 and 5 of the boards 1 and 1', with the result that, on the left, the wall has a toothed or findented face. the longitudinal teeth 5, S etc., of which are parallel to the base of the structure.

This toothed face is particularly advantageous forv y the exterior; in addition to the increased resistance to the weather which it has and the improvement in responding to polishes and paints, it unexpectedly provides an excellent sound proofing for the structure.

The length of the teeth 5, 5', 5 etc., namely the distance between their extreme faces and the outside of the brackets, can vary considerably, but it is particularly effective when this length is between half and twice the height of the bracket. Excellent results are obtained with lengths of 0.8 to 1.2 times the height of the bracket. In this way, the brackets on the outside of the wall are well protected from the rain and direct rays of thev sun.

The brackets are fixed, generally glued, in grooves 6, 7 provided in the boards, but these grooves, although very effective, are not obligatory. Bracing can be Vprovided by metallic or other uprights set in the wall.

The dotted lines 8, in FIG. 1, represent apertures in the boards 1 and 1', situated behind the plane of the drawing; the cross section of such an aperture can be seen in FG, 3. These apertures have a diameterequal to the distance between the brackets to allow the vertical introduction of a rod or, preferably, a tube 10, serving as a strut for the brackets; in this case the grooves 6, 7 are unnecessary. Nevertheless, the apertures 8 can be replaced by others of smaller section; they are preferably situated tangentially in relation to the brackets 2 and 3, when it is desired to introduce fthe tubes or rods. The apertures can have a section other than circular, their width or diameter usually varying between 5 mm. and mm., preferably between 10 and 40 mm., although these widths are not limitative. The apertures can vary in number in each board, from one only to, for example, one every 25 cm.

The channel 9 and/ or 9' in the brackets causes the free space 4 to communicate with the atmosphere.

When the wall is reinforced by tubes through ythe apertures 8, it is advantageous for the tubes to have orifices by which their interiors communicateV with the spaces 4. In the absence of such oriiices or in rthe case where the tubes are replaced by rods, grooves can be provided along the length of the internal diameter of the apertures.

'I'he last board at the bottom 1" rests normally on a footing or talon 11.

I'he boards 1, l', 1 etc. are preferably inclined towards the bottom to facilitate thetrunning away of water and to improve resistance to wind, the upper face of the ytalon 11 being shaped with the desired inclination. Y The latter can be for example 5 to 30 tothe horizontal, preferably 15 to 20. Then the cross-section of the brackets has preferably ther-form of oblique parallelol gram, as shown on FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 2 represents a panel similar to that of FIGn 1, in l.which three brackets 22, 23, 24 are superposed on each -board 21, forming two interior longitudinal. spaces 25 Vand 2,6.l Of course, the number of such spaces above each board Vcan be further increased.

The Wall according to the invention can give additional insulation by the use of various materials, such as fiber- Vglass, asbestos, Vpowdered cork,.polystyrene or other plasr tic materials, these materials being placed in the interior spaces 4, v275 and/ or 26.

y It is important that the boards and brackets should be finished and putin place in such a way that their thickkness is in the radial direction of the age-rings `12 of the kwood; that means the age-ring lshould preferably betangential in relation tothe width of .the wall.V A

According towhat is Wanted, the thickness of the wall of` the present invention can vary at will. Nevertheless, particularly practical structures are obtained with a thickness of the order of 40 to 200 rnm.; the boards having a width of40 to 200 mm. and each resting normally on 2 `to 4 spaced, parallelbrackets. By way ofan example, `a panel according to FIGS. 1 and 4 comprises boards 1, 1', 1" etc. of 100 mm. width;V the brackets 2 and Shave a cross sectional thickness of 24 mm., and are 32 mm.

` apart;.theV teeth 5, 5', S etc, are then 20 mm. in'length,

. that is to say 0.85 times the heightr (24 mm.) of the brackets. l

Although the invention has been described with reference to wood,it is not limited to this material, and can also be carried out with othermaterials, notably glass, `plastics materials, composite logs on an asbestos base, Vvarious cellulosic products, compressed wood, `resin impregnated blocks, or other similar materials.

What I claim is: l 1. A wall panel constituted of a series of superposed boards and brackets, each of the brackets being positioned within grooves in the, adjacent boards, wherein (a) each of said boards and brackets has a Vrst di- `rnension substantially parallel and disposed at an angle of from 5 to 30 to the horizontal, and a second dimension substantially vertical;

(b) at least two spaced brackets are interposed between each pair of superposed boards thereby detining la number of interior spaces` within the wall panel,`each of which spaces is bounded by a pair of boards and a pair of brackets; p

(c) at least some of the boards are traversed by apertures connecting the interior spaces adjacent thereto;

(d) at least one channel extends transversely of and through one of thebrackets and connects one of said interior spaces with the atmosphere; and

(e) one of the edges yof each board is in alignment with the outer sides of one series of the superposed brackets forminga plane, inner lateral face of the wall panel, and the opposite edge of` each board extends beyond the outer side of a second series of the superposed brackets by a distance equal to from 0.8 .to 1.2 times the height of the brackets to define an indented, outer lateral face of the wall panel, the

upper and lower faces of said boards being inclined downwardly from the plane lateral face of the panel to the indented lateral face thereof.

` Y 2. The wall panel as defined in claim 1, in which tubes are located inthe apertures in the height direction of the wall.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED` STATES PATENTS 

1. A WALL PANEL CONSTITUTED OF A SERIES OF SUPERPOSED BOARDS AND BRACKETS, EACH OF THE BRACKETS BEING POSITIONED WITHIN GROOVES IN THE ADJACENT BOARDS, WHEREIN (A) EACH OF SAID BOARDS AND BRACKETS HAS A FIRST DIMENSION SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL AND DISPOSED AT AN ANGLE OF FROM 5* TO 30* TO THE HORIZONTAL, AND A SECOND DIMENSION SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL; (B) AT LEAST TWO SPACED BRACKETS ARE INTERPOSED BETWEEN EACH PAIR OF SUPERPOSED BOARDS THEREBY DEFINING A NUMBER OF INTERIOR SPACES WITHIN THE WALL PANEL, EACH OF WHICH SPACES IS BOUNDED BY A PAIR OF BOARDS AND A PAIR OF BRACKETS; (C) AT LEAST SOME OF THE BOARDS ARE TRANSVERSED BY APERTURES CONNECTING THE INTERIOR SPACES ADJACENT THERETO; (D) AT LEAST ONE CHANNEL EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY OF AND THROUGH ONE OF THE BRACKETS AND CONNECTS ONE OF SAID INTERIOR SPACES WITH THE ATMOSPHERE; AND 